


Hey it's OK

by Gilrael



Series: EnnoTana [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Bentos, But more fluff than angst, Chikara does not like lying, Coming Out, Established Relationship, First Dates, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Mentions of drugs, Team Captain Ennoshita Chikara, Worried Parents, but nobody actually uses them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-07
Updated: 2016-05-12
Packaged: 2018-06-06 22:28:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6772786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gilrael/pseuds/Gilrael
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Once again Chikara knelt in the kitchen, staring at the boxed lunch his mother had made, and tried to think of a good excuse for why he hadn't eaten it.<br/>“Uh...”<br/>“Don't tell me you skipped lunch again,” Wakana said, towering over him with crossed arms.<br/>“Sorry...” Chikara muttered, not meeting his mother's eyes as he got up and handed her the box.</p><p>___</p><p>Chikara is trying to hide his relationship and sexuality from his parents, but his boyfriend's bentos complicate everything.</p><p>Basically a sequel to <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/6409315/chapters/14672587">Close your eyes and kiss me</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Worry

**Author's Note:**

> I've been thinking about this fic for ages. I probably wrote 10 different versions of that first scene until I actually wrote something that I was halfway satisfied with @_@ The nice comments and kudos on Close your eyes and kiss me are what made me stick with this, though, so thank you. I hope you enjoy my continued obsession with EnnoTana!

As bentos go it was pretty ordinary. It wasn't fancy or cute, just rice, meat and some veggies neatly sectioned off with plastic dividers. What made it special was that Chikara had received it as a surprise from his boyfriend.

Tanaka truly lived up to the boyfriend qualities he'd boasted about before they'd started going out. He made a point of always sending Chikara a “Good morning” via text and he walked him home part of the way after practice. He also respected Chikara's boundaries and made sure only to act affectionate when they were alone or with the team, since Chikara wasn't comfortable with coming out to the rest of the school.

And now they were meeting in a secluded corner of the school yard and Tanaka had shoved a boxed lunch into his hands as soon as they'd sat down.

Chikara had no idea whether his boyfriend could actually cook, but the rice looked nice and fluffy and nothing looked burnt.

“Let's eat, then,” he said, picking up a piece of meat with his chopsticks under Tanaka's watchful gaze.

He was not prepared. Nothing could've prepared him for this. Despite the completely ordinary appearance, the food was absolutely delicious.

“How is it?”

Chikara's head snapped up at the sound of Tanaka's worried question. Only now did he realise that he must have spaced out with the chopsticks still in his mouth like a total idiot. Tanaka chewed on his lower lip, anxiously awaiting Chikara's answer.

“This is amazing,” Chikara replied, instantly putting a proud smile on Tanaka's face.

“Glad you like it!” Tanaka said, before opening his own bento.

 

***

 

The smell of his mother's cooking wafted through the air as Chikara stepped into their flat.

“I'm home!” he said loudly, kicking off his shoes, and made his way into the kitchen.

“Welcome home,” Ennoshita Wakana replied, stirring what appeared to be beef stew. “Could you set the table, please?”

“I'm on it.” Chikara put his bag down in a corner before going to fetch some plates and chopsticks. “Will Dad be home for dinner?” he asked, remembering that his father had had to work overtime a lot recently.

“He just called. He's on his way.”

Chikara's mother frowned at the pot in front of her. She always worried too much about her husband, afraid that he'd overwork himself one day. Chikara didn't really know what to do to ease her mind, so he mostly just tried not to make her worry about him as well. That was probably the biggest reason why he didn't plan on telling her about his relationship with Tanaka any time soon. Maybe after graduation or once he'd been accepted at a film school.

“Oh, could you also get out your lunch box so I can wash it?” Wakana suddenly said as she checked whether the rice was done.

Chikara put down the last bowl and went to kneel down next to his school bag. As he pulled out the container and noticed how heavy it was, a sudden realisation dawned on him: He hadn't touched the food his mother had made him, because he'd eaten Tanaka's bento instead.

“Uh...” He got up, desperately trying to come up with an excuse. He couldn't tell her the truth. “I... I kinda wasn't hungry at lunch today,” he mumbled as he handed her the lunch box.

The frown on her face intensified. “Is everything alright? You aren't sick, are you?”

“No no, I'm fine,” Chikara assured her. The guilt was already gnawing at his insides. He hated lying to his mum. Luckily, she didn't press the issue.

 

***

 

The team dynamics had barely changed since Golden Week. The first years had been integrated into the team, and nobody really cared about the fact that they had two couples amongst them now. Also Hinata had found a very effective way to stop Kageyama's angry outbursts before they escalated.

“You fucking dumbass! You need to move your–” Kageyama never got to finish his sentence, because suddenly his boyfriend planted a kiss right on his mouth, causing him to almost fall over in shock and embarrassment.

“Ooooh, I need to remember that move!” Tanaka said, nudging Chikara with an elbow.

“For what?” the captain asked sceptically.

“For when you lecture me about homework.”

Chikara rolled his eyes and pushed his boyfriend towards the ball cart. “Stop slacking off. I want to see some serves!”

Tanaka picked up a ball and kissed Chikara in passing before yelling, “Noya-san, you wanna receive my serves?”

“Bring it!”

Smiling and with a faint blush on his cheeks, Chikara picked up a ball himself. He still wasn't quite used to Tanaka's affection. It always seemed so effortless and yet Chikara struggled with returning the gestures without almost melting into the ground.

He'd made him another bento today and it was just as delicious as the last one. Chikara wanted to pay him back, but he didn't really know how. He barely knew how to cook and he couldn't ask his mother for help lest she find out about him having a boyfriend. Maybe he could treat him to dinner some time. But where could they go?

Shaking his head, Chikara returned his thoughts to the here and now. He was the captain of this team, for goodness sake! He needed to focus on practice and set a good example for the first years.

 

***

 

Once again Chikara knelt in the kitchen, staring at the boxed lunch his mother had made, and tried to think of a good excuse for why he hadn't eaten it.

“Uh...”

“Don't tell me you skipped lunch again,” Wakana said, towering over him with crossed arms.

“Sorry...” Chikara muttered, not meeting his mother's eyes as he got up and handed her the box.

“You need to eat! Especially when you have practice in the afternoon,” she chided. “You're an athlete and an exam student, so you need all the energy and nutrients you can get!”

“I know.”

“You've been really out of it lately,” Chikara's father added. Ennoshita Yori was already sitting at the kitchen table, waiting for his son and wife to join him. “Are you having trouble at school?”

 _Great, now Dad's worried as well_.  “Everything is fine,” Chikara said, trying to put as much conviction in his voice as possible. “My grades have gone up and the first years have found their place in the team. There's nothing you have to worry about.”

 

***

 

There were only two people whom Chikara wanted talk to when it came to his relationship with Tanaka, but being alone with Narita and Kinoshita was quite the challenge these days. They were either surrounded by their teammates or other students when they were at school and when they met up in the evenings either Noya, Tanaka or both were also present.

In the end he had to resort to talking to them in a corner of their classroom between lessons. He knew it was risky to talk about this with their classmates around, but he really needed to find a solution to what Kinoshita had dubbed the “bento problem”.

“Just tell Tanaka to stop making you lunch. Problem solved,” Narita suggested quietly.

“I don't want to hurt his feelings,” Chikara mumbled, acutely aware that his entire face must be burning red. “And have you ever tried his cooking? He's a freaking genius.”

Suddenly, Kinoshita sat up straight, a smile spreading across his face. “Speaking of freaking geniuses. Why don't you give your mum's bento to Kageyama and Hinata? I bet they wouldn't mind the extra food.”

It was the perfect solution. Kageyama and Hinata were omnivores with an insatiable appetite, so they'd definitely agree and Chikara's mum would stop worrying about him. Probably. It was definitely worth a try, and thus Chikara found himself rushing to the second year classrooms at lunch time to get a hold of the freak duo before he met up with Tanaka.

Finding them wasn't much of a problem, he simply followed the sound of their bickering (Hinata couldn't shut Kageyama up when people other than their teammates were watching).

“Kageyama! Hinata!” he yelled when he spotted them walking out of a room, quickening his steps to catch up with them.

“Ennoshita-san?” They both looked a little puzzled.

Chikara checked whether there were any people around who could overhear them. Most of the second year students seemed engrossed in their own conversations, so he deemed it safe to talk. “Tanaka has been cooking lunch for me lately, so I have this extra bento my mum made,” he explained in a hushed tone. “I don't want to let it go to waste and I thought you guys might want it.”

Of course they agreed. Why hadn't he thought of this sooner?

He handed them the container and rushed outside to meet with Tanaka. He was already sitting in their usual spot.

“What took you so long?” he asked.

“I had to talk to Hinata and Kageyama for a second,” Chikara said dismissively as he sat down next to him. He didn't want Tanaka to think that he was being a burden or something, because he really wasn't. Chikara hadn't been this happy in ages, even if he was a little stressed out about his parents finding out. Being with Tanaka and knowing that his feelings for the boisterous wing spiker were reciprocated made him feel strong.

“Here's your bento. I think I might have overcooked the fish, though,” Tanaka said as he gave Chikara the simple lunch box.

“Don't worry, I've loved everything you made for me so far,” Chikara replied, putting a satisfied smile on his boyfriend's face. “I'll have to treat you to dinner some time.”

“Are you asking me on a date?”

Chikara's eyes went wide.  _Holy shit_ . They hadn't gone on a proper date yet, had they? “Um... If you'd like to...”

“Fuck yes! Of course I'd like to!” Tanaka's smile had turned into a wide grin. Chikara really wanted to kiss him, but he knew better. The kiss would have to wait until they were actually alone. Instead he shifted his position so their shoulders were touching.

 


	2. First date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fluff ahead!

They agreed to meet up for ramen on Saturday after practice. It wasn't like Chikara could've afforded to treat Tanaka to anything nicer than that. Tanaka, however, seemed happy enough with that choice, so Chikara didn't feel bad. He was actually quite excited and a little nervous. He'd never been on a proper date before. Would it be really different from hanging out like they usually did?

For the next couple of days the date was constantly on Chikara's mind. He barely managed to focus on practice and constantly had to shut down the daydreams. Why anyone had ever considered him to be a good captain if he couldn't even keep his head in the game eluded him. Luckily, Tanaka made up for his spaced out behaviour, although at the same time he was the worst distraction. He hadn't got rid of the habit of stripping his shirt in celebration constantly yet.

The thing that finally snapped Chikara out of it was the strange behaviour Kageyama exhibited on Friday during morning practice. Something was just _off_ about him, but Chikara couldn't have said what the problem was exactly. His tosses weren't as confident and accurate as usual and he lacked energy. He also seemed to avoid touching people. Not that he'd ever been very touchy-feely before, but he didn't even high-five his teammates anymore.

When Kageyama showed up for afternoon practice with a light sheen of sweat on his face before he'd even touched a volleyball, Chikara finally realised what was going on.

“Kageyama, come here!” he ordered sternly and touched his hand to Kageyama's forehead, finding his suspicion to be correct. “You're burning up!”

Kageyama instantly stepped back, brows furrowed. “I feel fine.”

“No, you don't!” Chikara shot back. How could anyone be so stubborn! “You are going home immediately. I do not want to see you at practice before this fever has gone down completely.”

“But–”

“No! You should know better than this! You need to take care of yourself.” Chikara was surprised by how much he sounded like his mother right now. “Hinata will accompany you home. Don't think you can try to practice with him behind my back. I will _know_ and you won't get to play in the next match if you do!”

That did the trick. Kageyama had a hunger for volleyball. He would never risk getting benched.

“Yes, Ennoshita-san,” he grumbled through gritted teeth.

After Hinata and Kageyama had left, Tanaka walked over to Chikara and put an arm around his shoulder.

“For a second I thought you'd been possessed by Daichi-san's spirit,” he said almost reverently.

“Stop joking,” Chikara muttered, shaking off his boyfriend's arm.

“I'm serious, though! Daichi-san and Suga-san would be so proud of you.”

Chikara shrugged. “He would've collapsed if he'd continued–”

“Sorry for being late!” Coach Ukai yelled as he entered the gym, interrupting Chikara's protest. “There was an incident at the store...” He looked around the gym confusedly. “Uh... Where are Hinata and Kageyama?”

“Kageyama has a fever, so I asked Hinata to walk him home,” Chikara explained immediately.

“Oh, alright then. That's probably for the best. Good thing that you're so observant, Ennoshita.” Then Ukai clapped his hands and called for the team to gather round.

“Told you you're a good captain,” Tanaka whispered into Chikara's ear. “Coach thinks so too.”

 

***

 

Chikara couldn't suppress the warm feeling that spread through him every time he remembered Tanaka's words.

“ _... you're a good captain.”_

He had no idea what he'd done to deserve such a perfect boyfriend, but he wasn't going to complain. He looked forward to their date. He'd make sure that Tanaka would feel all the appreciation and love Chikara held for him.

“Chikara? Chikara!”

 _Damn it!_ He'd spaced out at the dinner table again.

“Yes?”

Yori frowned at his son. “You're totally out of it.”

“Sorry.” Chikara lowered his head and shoved some food in his mouth, so he wouldn't have to talk.

“Are you maybe having girl troubles?”

Chikara almost choked on his food. “No!” he said once he got the coughing under control. Girls were literally the last thing on his mind.

“At least you've been eating your lunch again,” Wakana said wearily. “Remember to give me the box later, so I can put it in the dishwasher.”

 _Shit!_ Hinata still had the box! Usually, he'd give it back in the clubroom after practice, but since he'd walked Kageyama home...

“I think I forgot it in the clubroom,” Chikara lied, eyes trained on his plate because he didn't want to see the worry on his parents' faces.

 

***

 

“Good work everyone!” Chikara said as most of the team filed out of the clubroom on Saturday afternoon.

“Have fun on your _date_.” Kinoshita wiggled his eyebrows suggestively as he dodged Chikara's elbow.

Meanwhile Noya had put a hand on Tanaka's shoulder. “This is a historic day, Ryū,” he said, sounding way too serious. “I expect a report with all the details, alright?”

“He won't give you any details if he knows what's good for him,” Chikara growled. Why did all his friends have to be so embarrassing?

“Don't worry, Chikara, I'm not going to tell him anything that could harm your reputation,” Tanaka assured, grinning.

“Come on guys, get going,” Chikara said, wishing this situation to be over already.

When the other third years had finally left, Chikara heaved a sigh of relief and locked the door behind them.

Turning around again, he suddenly found himself face to face with his boyfriend. They were so close and Tanaka's eyes were obviously trained on his lips. Chikara knew the feeling all too well by now, but the butterflies still overwhelmed him every time they decided that it was time to throw a party in his stomach.

“There's no-one around. I checked,” Tanaka purred. “So can I...?”

_Holy shit, holy shit, I'm done for._

“Go ahead,” Chikara breathed out, closing his eyes and then it was happening. Tanaka's lips were chapped and a little rough but touched him so gently that Chikara's legs felt like jelly. His arms instinctively moved to wrap themselves around Tanaka's neck to steady himself, but also to draw out the sensation for just a little longer.

By the time their lips parted they were both red in the face and completely out of breath. Chikara had no idea how much time had passed.

 _Someone could've come by any moment..._ That thought was scary as fuck, but Chikara could never in his life regret kissing Tanaka.

“Uh... let's get going then.”

 

***

 

What they were doing wasn't particularly different from what they usually did. They were sitting next to each other at the counter, slurping their noodles and talking about volleyball. But it felt different, mostly because it was only the two of them, but also because sometimes they'd share a knowing look before turning their faces towards their bowls of ramen again.

It made Chikara happy. He liked that they didn't have to do something fancy to enjoy their time together. He knew that sooner or later there would be disagreements, and after they'd graduate they'd probably have to go long distance, since Chikara would go to university and Tanaka would probably stay home and start working, but that didn't faze him at all. They'd manage, Chikara was sure of that. He'd never been so sure about anything before.

“I'm surprised Kageyama didn't even try to take part in today's practice,” Tanka said after setting down his empty bowl on the counter.

“Well, I _did_ tell him he'd be benched if he didn't take care of himself.” Chikara shrugged and drank the last bit of broth.

“I wouldn't have put it past him to try and trick us. He's a bit obsessed, isn't he?”

“Kinda,” Chikara agreed, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “But he's the best setter we could ask for, so I'm not gonna complain.”

“True. Should we leave?”

Chikara nodded and waved to the waiter so he could pay for their ramen.

Outside it was already getting dark, but it wasn't like they'd have to get up early on Sunday and neither of them had a particularly strict curfew. They ended up deciding to go for a little walk.

“Thanks for treating me to dinner,” Tanaka said, kicking a pebble that was lying in his way.

“I had to pay you back for those delicious bentos somehow, didn't I?”

“I make them because it's fun. I like cooking and it's nice to see you enjoy my food.”

Chikara was _this_ close to taking Tanaka's hand, but he restrained himself. _We're in public_ , he reminded himself.

“I wanted to do something nice for you, too.”

Tanaka's fingers briefly brushed against the back of his hand, leaving Chikara to wonder whether it was intentional or an accident. He turned his head to see Tanaka looking pointedly ahead with a blush rising on his cheeks.

 _Intentional then_.

“It's getting late...” Tanaka remarked, sounding a little regretful.

“Yeah... We should probably head home.”

“I'll walk you home.”

“You don't have to.”

“But I want to.”

Chikara wasn't going to argue with that.

 

***

 

They said goodbye at a street corner, so Chikara's parents wouldn't get suspicious. After making sure there was no-one around they shared a brief kiss and then Chikara watched his boyfriend go with a slight spring in his step. It still baffled Chikara that Tanaka was just as happy with their relationship as he was himself. Chikara was still floating on cloud nine when he entered the flat.

His parents were waiting for him in the hallway.

“Chikara, we need to talk.”

_Well, there goes my good mood._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos, comments etc! I appreciate all of them :)


	3. Intervention

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was hard to get right, but I think I'm satisfied with how it came out. Prepare for lots of dialogue^^

Chikara's high from the date was completely gone by the time he sat down at the kitchen table with his parents. His mother had made tea, which probably meant that this was supposed to be a longer conversation. Chikara already knew what it was going to be about, but he didn't know what to tell them. He was probably sounding like a broken record by now, constantly saying that he was fine and that nothing was troubling him.

“So...” His father folded his hands on top of the table, looking at Chikara over the frame of his glasses. “Your mother and I are worried.”

Chikara had heard this sentence too often in the past couple of days, but it still made his stomach squirm with unease. He didn't like lying to them and he didn't like to worry them, but telling the truth could make things so much worse. He'd already used up all his luck when he came out to his team and ended up getting himself a boyfriend in the process. There was no way his parents would also accept him this easily.

“Did something happen while you were in Tokyo with the team?” his mother asked, nervously fiddling with her cup of tea. “You've been a little strange ever since...”

“Nothing happened.” Well, that was a lie, so he added, “Nothing worth worrying about at least.”

“Then why are you acting so weird?” Yori asked forcefully. “I can understand that you might not want to talk to us about everything that's bothering you, but we want to help you. I promise that we won't judge you, no matter what this is about.”

Chikara's hands were clenched into fists under the table. He could feel his fingernails digging into his palms. _Why do they keep pressing the issue? Why can't they just leave me in peace?_

“Is it because of your club activities? It must be really stressful to be captain. If it's too much for you–”

“It's not too much,” Chikara interrupted his father. “I can handle the club just fine.”

“Are you being bullied?” Wakana speculated, making Chikara groan.

“No, Mum, no-one's bullying me,” he replied exasperatedly. “And if anyone was bullying me, my team would take care of them. Trust me.”

The frown on Yori's face deepened. “Are you using drugs?”

“What the heck?! No!” This was getting out of hand. Chikara loved his parents, really, but this was ridiculous. All of this bullshit just because he supposedly skipped lunch a couple of times and acted a little spacey during dinner. “Why would you even think that?”

“Well, I read on the internet that–” Yori started, but Chikara was too baffled to let him finish his sentence.

“Wait a second... You fucking googled this?”

“Chikara, watch your language!” his mother chided.

“I'm going to watch my language when you stop going to the internet for parenting advice,” Chikara shot back. He could barely hold back his laughter. He could picture it perfectly: both his parents crowded around the computer, googling _our son is acting like a space cadet_. This was the dumbest conversation he'd ever had in his entire life. “Honestly, I'm the happiest I've been in a long while! And I'm certainly not taking drugs.”

“So you _do_ have a girlfriend!” his mother exclaimed almost triumphantly.

 _Oh, fuck this_. Chikara had enough. If his parents were so concerned about him just because he'd acted a little weird for a couple of days, then they couldn't react that badly to him being gay.

“Why does it have to be a girl?” he asked provocatively. He could feel the adrenaline rush through his body. This was probably the worst way to come out to his parents, he was aware of that, but how else was he going to make them stop worrying without spinning a huge web of lies?

His parents were startled by his question. His father seemed to have frozen up completely, while his mother blinked at him slowly.

“What are you trying to say?” she asked, every word pronounced very carefully, as if she was talking to someone who did not yet have a complete grasp of the Japanese language.

“Mum, Dad, I'm gay.”

Now Wakana was frozen, while Yori seemed to be recovering from his initial shock already. Apparently he'd already understood what was going on when Chikara had questioned their heteronormativity. He took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, closed it again and took another sip of tea.

Chikara was struck by the sudden urge to flee, but remained rooted to his chair.

_This was a terrible idea. Why did I even do that?_

“Well, that was unexpected,” his father finally said, once again folding his hands on the table. “So... Erm...You have a boyfriend?”

Chikara's mouth was too dry to speak, so he nodded and grabbed his own cup of tea. Well, at least they didn't appear to be angry.

“Do we know him?” his mother asked, barely loud enough to be heard at all.

“It's Tanaka.” They didn't look like they remembered his name. Probably because Chikara avoided talking about him ever since he'd realised how hard he was crushing on his teammate. “He's been over quite often. I've been tutoring him and Noya since last year,” Chikara explained, quickly putting down his cup, because his hands were starting to shake. _I did not think this through at all_. What if they were fine with him being gay but did not approve of Tanaka?

“Which one was Tanaka again?” Yori asked. “The small one or the bald one?”

“The one with the shaved head.”

For the next couple of minutes the kitchen was filled with silence. The three of them sat there, occasionally taking a sip of tea, but nobody made any attempts at talking. Chikara's shoulders were starting to hurt from how stiffly he'd been sitting this whole time. He would've loved to go to his room and leave this tense atmosphere behind, but he knew better than that. This conversation wasn't over yet.

Yori finally broke the silence with a sigh. “Well, I'm relieved that you're not taking drugs.” He paused to drink the rest of his tea. Chikara sensed a huge But coming and was not disappointed. “But I would like to meet this Tanaka guy properly.”

Okay, that was unexpected but not unreasonable. “We are going to study on Monday anyway. I can invite him over instead of going to his place.”

“He's not in college prep, is he?” Wakana asked.

“Uh, no...” Chikara had no idea where his mother was going with this.

“Then what about after graduation? You will be going to university. What about him?”

“We've only been going out since the end of Golden Week. We haven't talked about stuff like this yet,” Chikara mumbled. Holy shit, this was so fucking awkward.

“But you're serious about him?”

“I... Yes. We're both serious about each other,” Chikara said, conviction ringing in every word. “I really like him. He makes me happy.”

And that seemed to be it. His parents shared a brief look and then their facial expressions softened as they turned back to him.

“That's good,” Yori said, a faint smile appearing on his face. “I'd still like to meet him, though.”

 

***

 

Relief flooded through his body, as he entered his room and fell down on his bed, the tension in his shoulders slowly unfurling. His parents were fine with him being gay. They were neither angry nor disgusted, just a little shocked. Introducing them to Tanaka properly was going to be uncomfortable, though.

 _Damn, I should probably talk to him about this now_ , Chikara realised and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

 

To: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> I just came out to my parents and now they wanna meet you

 

It only took ten seconds for Tanaka to write his reply.

 

From: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> what????

> wait a sec, i'll call

 

Immediately after Chikara had picked up the phone, Tanaka started talking.

“What happened? I thought you didn't want to tell them?”

Chikara sighed and shifted into a more comfortable position on his bed. “They staged an intervention, because they thought I was doing drugs or something, so I basically had to tell them the truth.”

“ _You_ doing drugs? What the hell?” Tanaka asked disbelievingly. “Why would they think that?”

And then it dawned on Chikara that he had not told his boyfriend about the “bento problem”.

“Uh... Well, my mum thought I was skipping lunch, because I didn't touch the bentos she made for me and I couldn't really think of a good excuse so I ended up asking Hinata and Kageyama if they'd want to eat my mum's bento... And I've acted like a complete space case during dinner, because I was worrying about our date and... yeah...” he ended lamely.

“Chikara, you are supposed to be the intelligent one in this relationship,” Tanaka said, sounding amused. “You could've just told me and then I would've only made one bento and we could've swapped. I wouldn't mind that.”

Chikara groaned. Why didn't he think of _that_? At least Kinoshita and Narita hadn't thought of it either...

“I was totally overthinking this, wasn't I?”

“Sounds like it,” Tanaka chuckled. “But how did your parents react to... you know...”

“They are shocked, but it's gonna be fine, I think. There was lots of awkward silence, but when I told them that you made me happy they even smiled.”

“So I make you happy?”

Chikara was glad that his boyfriend could not see the way he was blushing right now. “Yes, you do.”

“You make me happy, too, you know,” Tanaka said. The soft tone of his voice was almost too much for Chikara's poor heart. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath, before continuing.

“Well, my parents want to meet you, so I thought we could study at my place instead of yours on Monday.”

“Monday?!” Tanaka almost yelled into the phone. “That's like... soon! I need time to prepare myself!”

To be honest, Chikara was a little scared as well. He wanted his parents to accept Tanaka. “They've seen you already, so you don't need to worry about dressing up. We'll just go into my room for a bit until my dad comes home from work and then we'll have dinner with them. Just try to keep the swearing to a minimum and you'll be fine. Probably.”

“Probably,” Tanaka repeated, voice still filled with panic.

 

***

 

It was in the middle of the night – 3:27 according to Chikara's alarm clock – that he woke up with a sudden realisation. His parents did not mind the fact that he was gay. He'd successfully come out to them without causing a huge uproar.

Maybe he hadn't run out of luck yet.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're not disappointed with this development xD  
> Next: Tanaka meets the parents


	4. Meet the parents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uni has been kicking my but this week, so this took a little longer, but here it is!

Chikara spent most of his Sunday cooped up in his room, catching up on his homework.

It was a good way to avoid his parents. Maybe it was Chikara's overactive imagination, but during breakfast and lunch they kept looking at him like they were seeing him for the first time, like he was suddenly someone else and not their seventeen-year-old son. They did talk to him normally, though, so he probably was imagining things. He still preferred to spend as much time as possible in his room, where he was safe from awkwardness and had homework to distract him from the fact that tomorrow he'd introduce his boyfriend to his parents.

Said boyfriend, however, did not want to let him forget about that fact and kept sending Chikara panicked texts.

 

From: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> should i bring nice clothes to change into after practice???

 

To: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> That would be overkill. They know we have practice

 

From: Tanak Ryūnosuke

> if you say so >_<

 

Sighing, Chikara stared at his phone. He hated knowing that he'd caused Tanaka to freak out because he'd been too stupid to deal with his parents in a way that would not make them suspicious (although their suspicions turned out to be totally wrong). He rubbed his forehead, trying to think of a way to make this entire thing less terrifying, but his mind kept on drifting towards worst case scenarios.

_What if they don't like him?_ He didn't need them to be super excited about Tanaka, but it'd be nice if they remained neutral towards him at least. Then he could have him over anytime he wanted without it being awkward. 

To Chikara's dismay, Tanaka was thinking about the same scenario.

 

From: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> what if they hate me?

> i don't want you to dump me ;_;

 

As if that was going to happen.

 

To: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> Stop. Don't even think about it

> I am NOT going to dump you

> I'd prefer it if my parents liked you but if they don't that won't change how I feel about you

 

From: Tanaka Ryūnosuke

> i really want to kiss you right now :-*

 

***

 

Chikara sneaked out of his room to search the kitchen cabinet for something to snack on while he worked on that Lit essay he had to hand in by Tuesday. He had just found his favourite biscuits hidden behind a bag of trail mix when his father came in.

“Making any progress on your homework?” he asked and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the table.

“I'm done with English and History,” Chikara said, closing the cabinet. He was almost out of the kitchen, when he thought of something and stopped. Keeping everything bottled up had never worked out for him, right? So maybe he should suck it up and actually talk to his father. “About tomorrow...”

“Hm?” Yori looked at him curiously.

“Um... Please don't treat Tanaka any differently than you'd treat Narita and Kinoshita.” Those two had been his friends since middle school so his parents knew them pretty well, unlike Tanaka whom he'd only met at Karasuno. “He's kinda freaking out right now because he thinks you and Mum are going to hate him...”

Yori considered his answer carefully and Chikara couldn't help but wonder if his father had realized that Tanaka wasn't the only one freaking out.

“Well... It's not like your mother and I have very high expectations. As long as he's not genuinely awful or dangerous I won't mind him. You are the one dating him, not me.” A teasing smile crept onto Yori's face. “And your judgement can't be _that_ terrible–”

“Yesterday you thought I was taking drugs,” Chikara reminded him.

His father held up his hand defensively. “Hey, I was worried, okay? But now I know that you are not engaging in illegal activities...” He sighed, suddenly getting serious again. “I admit that I was shocked at first, but I really don't mind you being gay. There's nothing wrong with that. Your mother and I want you to be happy, so we're not going to be mean to the boy you like...” The teasing smile returned, before he added, “... at least not on purpose.”

Chikara sighed, unable to keep a straight face himself. “Thanks, Dad,” he mumbled. “I... I should get back to work...”

“Do that,” Yori said and took a bite out of his apple.

Chikara was once again reminded that he really loved his parents, even if they worried too much sometimes.

_Or maybe because they do._

 

***

 

“You sure I shouldn't have put on my uniform instead?” Tanaka asked, looking down at his black track suit with a frown.

“Yes,” Chikara said calmly as they approached the flat. “Just be yourself.”

Tanaka groaned and shoved his hands into his pockets. “And you are really sure that they don't mind the whole gay thing?”

“Yes, I am,” Chikara sighed exasperatedly. They'd been over this a couple of times already, but Tanaka simply wouldn't believe him. “Relax. Everything is going to be fine. We'll hang out in my room until my father comes home from work and then we'll have dinner and nothing is going to go wrong,” he said and unlocked the front door. “I'm home!”

“Excuse the intrusion,” Tanaka mumbled, stumbling into the flat behind Chikara.

Chikara's parents were both already waiting for them in the hallway. Yori had been able to get off work early for once. So much for hanging out in Chikara's room.

“Hello, you two,” Wakana said, smiling kindly.

“You must be Ryūnosuke-kun!” Yori said, looking him up and down. “I'm Chikara's father, Ennoshita Yori, and this is my wife Wakana.”

Tanaka quickly bowed his head. “Nice to meet you.”

“Well, dinner is ready,” Wakana said, pointing at the kitchen.

“We'll put our things in my room real quick,” Chikara said, trying to gain just a little more time. He grabbed Tanaka's hand pulled him forward.

“Okay, but don't take too long,” his father said, pointedly looking at their linked hands. Chikara couldn't fight the blush that rose on his cheeks. He quickly walked into his room and closed the door behind him. He took a deep breath to steady himself before turning around to his boyfriend. Tanaka's nerves were showing on his face.

“Relax,” Chikara repeated once again. “Just be yourself, okay?”

Tanaka took a shaky breath. “Yeah. I haven't been this nervous in a while.”

Chikara squeezed his hand. “It'll be fine. Come on, just leave your bag over there and then let's get this over with.”

 

***

 

Chikara's parents clearly tried their best to appear welcoming, but the atmosphere in the kitchen was oddly tense. After a couple minutes of silence, Wanaka finally managed to instigate a conversation by asking Chikara and Tanaka about their day at school. The tension remained and everyone's speech was a little too polite, a little too distant. Usually Chikara's parents wouldn't talk this formally and Tanaka wasn't his usual exuberant self either.

After a while they went from talking about school to the time after graduation.

“What are your plans, Ryūnosuke-kun? Do you intend to go to university on a sports scholarship?” Yori asked.

“I love volleyball, but I don't think I'll be scouted,” Tanaka admitted. “I thought about going to culinary school maybe.”

“Oh, so you like cooking?” Wakana chimed in.

“It's fun,” Tanaka said, shrugging.

“And he's really good at it,” Chikara added.

“So you've tried his cooking already?” his mother asked, eyebrows raised.

_Damn, I still haven't talked to her about the bentos_ . “Uh... He's been making me lunch,” he mumbled, eyes fixed on his bowl of rice.

“You never skipped lunch, did you?” his mother realised, rubbing at her eyes.

And that's when Yori started laughing. Chikara wanted to vanish on the spot.

“Honestly,” Chikara's father wheezed out between fits of laughter, “why were we even worrying about you?”

“I told you that I was fine!” Chikara grumbled.

Wakana shook her head, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “So he already prefers your cooking over mine,” she said. “Looks like you've won, Ryūnosuke-kun.”

Both Tanaka and Chikara were blushing like idiots, but the tension was gone, replaced by a warm feeling that Chikara couldn't really describe.

 

***

 

Tanaka flopped down on Chikara's bed with a chuckle. “That went so much better than I expected.”

Chikara frowned at him, sitting down at the edge of the bed. He was happy that his father and boyfriend ended up sharing the same sense of humour. What Chikara wasn't happy about was that half of the jokes were made at his expense. Tanaka was right, though.

“It could've been so much worse,” Chikara sighed. He was absolutely exhausted and studying was the last thing he wanted to do right now, but technically that was what they were supposed to be doing. “How's your homework situation?”

Tanaka groaned and wrapped his arms around Chikara's waist. “Don't tell me you actually want to study right now,” he complained. “There are so many things we could do instead: napping, cuddling, making out...”

Chikara grinned. He was too tired to resist him. “That's a compelling argument.”

Tanaka pulled him down onto the mattress. It took them a while to figure out how to situate themselves on the narrow bed so neither of them would end up falling off the edge in the heat of the moment. In the end Chikara was straddling Tanaka, looking down at him with some uncertainty. They hadn't really had a chance yet to do much more than share chaste kisses when no-one was around, so he wasn't sure how to initiate this. He didn't want to seem overeager or move too fast, but at the same time he wanted to throw himself at his boyfriend.

“You done staring at me?” Tanaka asked, wiggling his eyebrows. “'Cause I was actually looking forward to that making out thing, you know...”

Rolling his eyes, Chikara bent down. He was once again struck with how much Tanaka affected him. His entire body felt like it was on fire and every kiss they shared fanned the flames. Their kisses started out short and sweet, but after a while Chikara felt a little bolder, experimentally flicking his tongue over Tanaka's lower lip. Tanaka hummed his approval, opening his mouth a little.

_How is any of this real?_ Chikara asked himself as their tongues touched tentatively. Tanaka twisted his fingers into the hair at the back of Chikara's head.  _If this is a dream, I don't want to wake up from it._

All awkward conversations were worth it if they led him to this moment. As unbelievable as it felt to have Tanaka pinned to the bed beneath him, Chikara knew that it was real.

“I love you,” he whispered when Tanaka broke away from the kiss, gasping for air.

“Holy shit, I wanted to be the one to say it first!” Tanaka complained, but his eyes were sparkling with delight. “I love you, too.”

Chikara couldn't help the grin as he pressed his lips against Tanaka's again.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the kind comments and messages! EnnoTana shippers are honestly the nicest people. I hope you enjoyed reading this silly thing as much as I enjoyed writing it :)  
> I'm already working on the next multi chapter EnnoTana fic, but I still need to figure some stuff out with that one...

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on [tumblr](http://gilrael.tumblr.com).


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